Sugar, Spice, But Not All That Nice
by LockedAndLokied
Summary: Dick's life has always been rather mundane until a shadow demon started stalking him. Especially when the shadow demon can turn into a devilishly handsome man with the prettiest eyes ever.


CHAPTER 1

Dick often kept his apartment quite warm. The minute the temperature outside dips below sixty degrees, he has the heater on.

It was only fall in Gotham, and there should have been a few more weeks of the late summer heat before the winter chills settled in. However, his apartment was freezing.

Especially his bedroom.

At first, Dick thought his heater had broken. So he called in the apartment's handyman to give it a quick look. The man had said there seemed to be nothing wrong with the system, but he had changed it anyways. However, Dick's apartment still hovered around freezing.

Even under several layers of clothes, Dick could not seem to stop the cold from creeping under his skin and into his very bones.

He didn't notice the shadows moving until a week later.

Dick went to Gotham Medical University. He was a medical major, finishing his last year of med school and helping out at the hospital on campus for extra credit. Usually, he wouldn't get home until 1 AM, and would have to be up around eight to finish any homework from the day before. Then it would repeat all over again.

But Dick had gotten off earlier than normal that night, arriving in his darkened apartment around midnight. He was getting ready to turn in, checking to make sure all the windows and doors were locked and frowning at the heater again. His hair was wet form his shower and a towel around his waist. He stepped into his cold, cold, cold bedroom when he saw looked in the opposite corner of his room, the one by the window and two red, glowing orbs were staring back.

Dick jumped back in surprise, screaming. The eyes blinked slowly and the shadows shifted. Dick screamed again and went to run when he slipped on the wet wood floor and fell on the ground, his head knocking hard against the ground, and he blacked out.

Cheerful music drew Dick back to consciousness. Soft sunlight filtered through his window and onto his face. Grimacing, Dick rubbed his head. It hurt. Dick turned off his alarm and looked down at himself.

He was naked, a towel tangled between his legs and his covers slipping off of him. Dick was slightly puzzled. He didn't remember getting in bed without clothes on. Yes, before he liked sleeping only in briefs, but since the dramatic temperature change in his apartment, he'd been sleeping in pajama pants and shirt and a hoodie.

Hazy images of last night surfaced.

A creature shrouded in shadows, with large, red eyes. Screaming. Then hitting his head on the ground really hard.

But never getting in bed.

Dick glanced at the corner where he thought he saw the shadow creature.

At first, there was nothing.

Then, he noticed that the corner did seem darker than the rest of his room. While the sunlight had lit up nearly every nook and cranny of his small bedroom, that corner was still darker.

At first, Dick thought it was a trick of the light. Then, two red eyes appeared, looking straight at Dick.

Dick screamed. He screamed and he ran.

Dick was standing in the hallway of his apartment building, out of breath and only clutching a damp towel to cover himself.

He dialed a number into the pay phone at the end of the hall using a few coins he'd found scattered around the area.

"What do you want?" Came the reply.

"Man, can I come over right now? Please?" Dick looked over his shoulder, expecting the creature to be there.

"Grayson, it's 8 AM. What could you possibly want at this time? I don't have cereal."

"Dami, please. Something happened and I can't be at my place right now," Dick all but pleaded, trying to keep his voice down.

There was a heavy sigh on the other end. "Fine. Come over."

Dick snuck all the way down to the basement garage without anyone seeing him. He hid form a couple of girls and was nearly spotted by the doorman. He got in his car, and pulled on the extra hoodie he kept in the back and lay the towel over his crotch.

As he drove to Damian's penthouse, he couldn't keep himself from tapping nervously against the steering wheel. Had he imagined everything? Maybe his mind was playing tricks on him. Or maybe there was some evil, supernatural being haunting his apartment.

Damian was Dick's best friend. Though the man was only twenty, they had struck up a unlikely friendship when Damian had driven to the hospital at midnight two years ago with one arm badly broken, and all his fingers were bloody and twisted in weird angles. Dick had been the one sent to talk to him about what was going on. And Damian had shut him down almost immediately.

Dick was quite surprised because most patients, no matter how old would be in at least a bit of shock and in quite a lot of pain, in Damian's position. But the eighteen-year-old would not let Dick baby him at all.

The night ended with Dick and Damian going out to get coffee after Damian's surgery and several casts. Soon, Dick found himself visiting Damian in his penthouse in northern Gotham, something that had been left to him by his traveling parents, to check on how the boy was doing.

While the two were polar opposites, they got along quite well, and Damian, who had few close friends, had taken a liking to Dick and the elder would gladly say the same.

But when Damian opened his door to a half-naked Dick Grayson and didn't say a word, and only stood aside to let Dick come in, Dick had never been more grateful for anyone in his life.

"Sit. Spill." Dick was handed a steaming mug of coffee, just how he liked it.

"I think something is haunting my apartment," he blurted out, chewing on the rim of his mug nervously.

"Like a ghost?" Damian raised an eyebrow. He paused. "Do you realize how ridiculous you sound right now?"

Dick frowned sadly. "I do sound stupid, don't I? But really. My apartment has been really damn cold recently and I even got the heater replaced but nothing! And last night," Dick shivered. "Last night, I saw something."

"Wow."

"Damian, please."

"Okay. You saw something. Pray tell, Grayson, what did you see?"

"I-I don't know. It was like a bunch of shadows. And it had red eyes."

Damian gasped. "I know what it is!"

"You do?" Dick asked, looking up hopefully.

"Yeah. It's the over imaginative mind of a sleep-deprived med student," Damian deadpanned.

Dick glared at him.

"I'm serious. You look like shit, Grayson."

Dick set his mug down. "You're not going to take me seriously. I don't even know why I bothered." He started standing up.

Damian sighed. "You show up at my door on a Wednesday morning, dressed in a sweatshirt and a wet towel claiming you saw monsters. I'm sorry if it's a bit hard to take you seriously. I mean, you did slip and knock yourself out last night, did you not? Maybe you forgot that you climbed into bed or something. Maybe it was all a dream or your mind playing tricks on you. There's no such thing as ghosts or monsters."

There was a long, tense pause. "You're right," Dick said with a wry smile. "I don't know what I was thinking. Probably too much coffee, honestly."

Damian gave him an _I-told-you-so_ look. "Well, since you're here. Stay for breakfast? I was planning on making veggie omelets."

Dick smiled. "Sounds amazing. Er, can I borrow some clothes first?"

* * *

CHAPTER 2

Dick forgot about the shadow monster. He was kept quite busy that night, as there was a lot of work to do. There had been an accident on Gotham's south bridge, and so there were quite a few people in the hospital that night.

But when Dick did go home, he was immediately shaken by how cold it was. His apartment seemed even colder than normal.

Grumbling about the temperature to himself, Dick decided to take a hot shower, as hot as it would go. He turned the shower on and let the steam fill the small bathroom. He went to go fetch a towel from the closet by his bedroom.

That's when he saw the eyes. They were floating above his bed, staring at him, unblinking. Dick dropped the towel and ran back into the bathroom, locking the door behind him.

Breathing hard, he fumbled for his phone, which were still in the pocket of Damian's sweatpants. He pulled it out and with shaking fingers, hovered over his keypad. Who would he call? Damian was asleep now, and there wasn't anything he could do to help him immediately. The police surely wouldn't believe him. And then he remembered something.

A few years back, Dick had saved the life of an old man, who had fallen into the bay and couldn't swim. After his rescue, the man insisted on paying Dick back, but he didn't have money. Instead, he gave Dick his phone number, saying that he was a priest that was knowledgeable in the demonic arts, and should Dick ever need anything, to call him.

Surprisingly, Dick still had his number.

Dick waited for someone to pick up, hoping that it was not too late. His eyes were trained on the bathroom door and he could almost _feel_ the dark presence behind it. He didn't know if the shadow creature could travel through walls, but he hoped and hoped that it could not.

"Hello?"

Dick almost sobbed in relief. "Father Kent?"

"Yes. May I ask who this is?" A calm voice asked.

"Um, Dick Grayson. I don't know if you remember me, but you gave me your number, saying I might need it one day?"

"Ah, yes, Mister Grayson. And what may I help you with?"

Dick swallowed hard. "There's something in my apartment. I think it's been here for a least a week now and I'm terrified right now," he said, surprised at how calm his voice actually was. Must be the medical training.

"I see," Father Kent sounded grave. "May I ask you to describe this creature?"

Dick gave a high-pitched giggle, and he realized that he must sound crazy. "It's-It's like a blob of shadows with red eyes. And it made my apartment really cold. And it's hovering outside my bathroom door right now, I think."

There was a short pause. "Mister Grayson, I fear you may have a shadow demon in your house."

"Sh-Shadow demon?"

"Yes. Shadow demons feed off of fear. They grow larger and more powerful the more someone fears them. And if what you described is correct, your demon is waiting for a little more fear before it can successfully gain more powers like moving through solid objects and picking them up."

"What?" Dick all but whispered.

"And worse, shadow demons are next to impossible to kill. But, I do have a solution. I cannot reach you at the moment, but do you have water by you right now?"

Dick looked at the shower, which was still running. "Yes."

"Good, now I can teach you to bless the water and it will ward off the demon. It cannot attack you then. But to get rid of it, I must come myself and ward you and your house against the creature."

Dick nodded furiously. "Thank you, please."

"Okay, now listen carefully…"

* * *

The demon followed Dick around all night. Dick had thrown the holy water at the demon, and it had backed away like it was burned, but that did not stop it from slinking around the apartment behind Dick.

Dick also carried a bottle of holy water on him at all times. He camped out at one end of his living room, bottles of holy water creating a circle around him. All through the night, he sat there, watching the demon with red eyes.

Every so often, the demon would creep forward towards Dick, but Dick would snarl and toss holy water at it. Then it would back away until it worked up more courage to creep forward again.

It seemed like an eternity later that dawn broke. Sunlight slowly started crawling its way into Dick's apartment, making the demon's shadows less visible, though it did not disappear. And finally, there was a knock at his door.

"It's open," Dick shouted.

The door cracked open slightly. A somewhat familiar man walked in.

"Mister Grayson, I presume?" The older man asked.

Dick nodded. Father Kent turned to look at the demon, which was twisting and curling in the corner opposite Dick.

"Ah, yes. It is as I feared. But worry not, Mister Grayson," Father Kent said. "Your demon is not powerful enough yet to do any harm. But had you waited any longer, you could have ended up dead."

Father Kent pulled out a small drawstring bag. He reached inside and pulled out a handful of white powder. He muttered some words over it, words that made growling sounds come from the demon. It started slinking backwards, pressing itself into the corner.

Father Kent threw the powder at the demon, and a harsh screeching sound came from it. The shadows of the demon started smoking and steaming and soon, there was nothing left of it.

"What did you do?" Dick asked, amazed.

"I banished it temporarily. But we must work quickly." He pulled out a few more small drawstring bags. "Place one of these in four corners of your house. It will ward you against all demons and evil spirits in the future. Then rub this on yourself every night for three nights, at the same time every night." He handed Dick a small bottle filled with an ugly green liquid.

Dick took the five things and immediately got to work. Once the four bags were placed down, Dick thanked Father Kent profusely before the old man left.

And for the first time in what seemed like a long time, Dick could walk around his house without three sweaters on.

* * *

CHAPTER 3

For three nights, Dick followed the instructions of Father Kent. He rubbed the oddly sweet smelling liquid over his arms, chest and legs before bed, and he had the most satisfying sleep in a long time as well.

But unfortunately, not everything was great.

Dick had to stay late filing for one of the nurses that had not been on duty because she was on a maternity leave. It was a hour past the time he usually went home and he still had half a stack left.

One of Dick's least favorite jobs was filing. Not only did he have to manually file each one, but he also got paper cuts really often, and paper cuts hurt like hell.

And so he fell asleep at his desk. There was no one else in his wing of the hospital. Everyone had gone home. The only people still there were on the other side of the hospital, so there was no one to bother him.

But Dick woke up to someone placing a blanket over his shoulders. He sat up quickly, a piece of paper sticking to his cheek. Dick wiped away a thin trail of saliva and rubbed his eyes. He yawned and turned.

There was a young man standing in the doorway of his office. He looked about Dick's age, maybe a bit younger, and he looked quite angry. Bright blue eyes were glaring at Dick and his full lips were turned down in a frown. Hands were stuffed in the pockets of a leather jacket, and the stance screamed disappointment.

Dick yawned again. "Sorry, I was- I was just resting my eyes. Um, can I help you?"

The man didn't answer, and just continued glaring at Dick while leaning against the doorframe.

"If you need something, the emergency room is still open, and it's over there. There's no one in this wing right now, if you're seeking medical attention? Hello?"

The man finally seemed to acknowledge Dick. He looked Dick up and down and rolled his eyes.

Dick looked down at himself self-consciously. His scrubs were wrinkled and there were marks on his arms form where the papers pressed against him for too long. Dick was also pretty sure that his face looked a mess as well.

"Seriously, man. What do you need? You're not even supposed to be here. You're obviously not a doctor and you should not have gone wandering in places you're not allowed to be in. Did you not read the signs on the door? Hellooo?" Dick was getting tired of this guy. He stood up and walked towards the man. He grabbed the man's elbow and went to pull him out of the offices.

But the man grabbed Dick's shoulder. And it _burned._ Dick yelped as a hole was burnt into his scrubs and an imprint of the man's hand was left on Dick's shoulder, hot and red.

"What the hell?!" Dick jumped back. "Who the fuck are you?"

The man's frown flickered up into a smirk. Dick watched in growing horror as the man blinked and his eyes turned red. The same glowing red that had haunted Dick's apartment three nights ago.

Dick stumbled back, tripping over his chair. "You're not supposed to be here! I followed all the instructions Father Kent gave me."

The man stepped forward. "Oh, did you?" He finally spoke. His voice was soft and teasing. "Lookie everyone, Dickie followed the orders of some crazy old fart! You wanna cookie?" He blinked his eyes innocently and the last blink, the flicked back to blue. Cold, cold blue.

Dick scrambled back again, slipping and falling on his ass. He had his back pressed against the filing cabinets as the demon came closer.

"Wh-What do you want with me?" Dick whimpered. "Please don't kill me. I'm sorry, I-"

The demon smiled and crouched down to Dick's level. "Oh, don't be sorry, Dickiebird. I was annoyed when your little friend banished me earlier, but I just couldn't stay away. Mmm, you smell so good right now, all that fear radiating off of you. Absolute delicious." The demon made a big deal of licking his lips and breathing deeply. "I missed you, Dickie. Did you miss me too?"

* * *

CHAPTER 4

Dick found himself unable to move. He was literally, physically paralyzed. He had been moved into his office chair like he was a rag doll, and now, the demon was straddling his lap.

"Ah, Dick. You never fail to amuse me," the demon chuckled darkly. "At first, I was so surprised it took you so long to even see me. I mean, I followed you all around your house, I turned your coffee cold a few times but you just kept on drinking it. Life of a med student, right?" The demon stroked Dick's chin. "Don't worry, though. I'm here now. And I'm going to take _very_ good care of you."

Dick whimpered. "I'm sorry I banished you. Please let me go!" He said, hating how pathetic he sounded, but anything to get him out of here.

"Oh, but I can't. I must say, fear from you is just so much more _exotic_ than any other human I've ever consumed," The demon laughed, his mouth close to Dick's ear. Dick felt a light nip at his earlobe. "I bet your flesh tastes just as good," he whispered.

Dick sobbed quietly at that.

The demon straightened, frowning a little. "I'm kidding, jeez. I don't _actually_ eat people. That's more up my father's alley. Now _he_ was not a demon to be messed with." The demon smiled a little. "But me, sweet Dickiebird, I'm much more forgiving. The scent of fear just drives me _wild._ "

The demon leaned in, his eyes flickered to red. "And I can't wait to have more of you," he whispered against Dick's lips. Then he pressed lightly, kissing Dick, who squeaked in surprise. The demon took this chance to deepen the kiss. The demon's tongue swiped along Dick's lower lip, and Dick felt himself relaxing. All the tension in his muscles faded and his mind went blank.

He couldn't remember why he was so worried before, why he was so _scared._ His jaw went slack, opening for the demon, who moaned in delight.

And goodness, the tastes. The demon tasted spicy and sweet at the same time, searing Dick's senses, but soothing them with the same touch, the same caress.

Fingers wove through Dick's hair, pulling his head back and exposing his neck. The kisses trailed down, and Dick couldn't do more than gasp and shiver and moan lightly. His mind was clouded and he couldn't process more than how _good_ the demon tasted and Dick wanted _more._

The demon pulled away and Dick whimpered at the loss. The demon flashed him a wicked smile, and he literally looked devilishly handsome.

"Not bad, right? Best you've ever had, Dickie?" He purred.

Dick nodded hazily.

"Of course I am. You'll never find any person or demon better than me. You're lucky, Dickiebird. And you're _mine._ Understood?"

Dick gave him a loopy smile and nodded again.

The demon frowned. "Damn it. I overdid it." He slid off of Dick's lap. Dick surged towards him, nearly falling from his chair. The demon pushed him back into his seat and started pacing the room, muttering to himself. "'What did I tell you, Jason? Why can't you listen, Jason? Why do you always act without thinking, Jason?'" The demon, Jason, growled to himself and looked over at Dick again, who was still smiling at him dazedly.

He shook his head and walked back over to Dick. "C'mon, let's get you home." Jason touched Dick's forehead, and Dick's head promptly fell over, hanging down limply, fast asleep. Jason easily pulled him up and slung him over his shoulder in a fireman's carry.

"Tim is going to kill me," Jason muttered under his breath as he closed the lights of Dick's office with a snap of his fingers and walked silently down the dark hallway.

Jason debated on whether or not to teleport to Dick's apartment. He could hear the nagging voice in his head again. Sighing, Jason decided to teleport anyways. He already broke two rules, why not break the rest?

Jason carefully lay Dick down on his bed, staring at the sleeping man for a moment. Demons didn't sleep, so he didn't know if Dick would be comfortable sleeping in clothes. Jason was uncomfortable even wearing clothes, but apparently it was a human custom to wear clothes in the presence of other humans. Most of the time.

Dick had worn clothes to sleep when Jason had watched him before, but the texture of the clothes was different, much softer.

Deciding that it couldn't be too big of a deal, Jason burned away the rest of Dick's scrubs, taking care not to burn the man's skin this time. Speaking of the burned skin, Jason leaned over Dick and ran his tongue along the slightly raised burned skin. He watched as the burn healed and the skin was left as smooth and supple as before.

Now Jason was frowning down at a naked Dick, and he had no idea what to do next. From what he had observed, Dick did sleep near naked sometimes, but maybe he would be more comfortable in clothes? Jason had always been a bit confused on the idea of sleeping. Some people slept in clothes, some people did not. And Dick did both it seemed.

Sighing, Jason took off his leather jacket and placed it on Dick's bare chest before throwing the thick covers over the rest of his body. Jason watched for a moment longer as Dick shifted, curling onto his side and hugging Jason's jacket to his chest.

A small smile found its way onto Jason's lips. His eyes drifted to the clock by Dick's bedside and he sighed. A more serious mask took over Jason's human form and he teleported out of Dick's bedroom.

* * *

CHAPTER 5

"You're late."

Jason's human form melted away into shadows. He approached the figure that was leaning against the dirty wall of the abandoned warehouse.

 _I was occupied, Timothy._ Jason spoke in the archaic language of the demons.

"Occupied, right," Tim, Jason's younger brother snorted. "You realize that you only have three weeks left, right?"

Jason growled threateningly at Tim. _I know. You don't need to remind me. I'm not an idiot._

"Could've fooled me," Tim finally pushed himself off of the wall. "And you really think that this… Richard Grayson is the right one?"

Jason would have scoffed. _Of course. He's perfect for the ritual. I don't doubt that he will be worthy. And besides, I think I can win him over in time for the ceremony._

Tim sighed. "It's not that, Jay. I'm worried you'll get caught."

 _I won't._

"You could. Not much gets past Father, you know?"

 _I know. But Father doesn't seem to like me very much, does he?_ Jason sneered. He was never very happy talking about his parents. Yes, they created him, but he didn't ask them to.

There were a few ways for demons to be born. One, a human soul that was sent to hell can become a demon, after many years of torture. The process usually took a couple centuries, and the products were half-blood demons. Two, a demon will impregnate a living human, and this was the most common way. It was quick, and quite efficient. Given, the demons are only half-bloods and they are not as powerful as pure-blood demons. And the last way was for two demons, half-blood or pure-blood, to "combine" their essences and create a new demon, a pure-blood demon. Both Jason and Tim were of the third kind, two of a less than a hundred pure-blood demons left.

Half-blood demons, while powerful, could be easily destroyed, banished, and warded against. And they only had one form. There were a few forms for a demon to choose from.

Shadows, which were one of the more common choices, were hard to kill, hard to ward against, and very hard to catch. But shadow demons were also weaker than the other demons. They fed off of fear and needed to slowly build their power. But holding a shadow form took a lot less energy, so it was Jason's preferred form, and the form of his Sire.

A living guise is another form. Demons were weaker in this form, much weaker. Their powers were limited to physical ones. Demons with a living form do not have telekinetic powers, but they could easily hide in the human world in plain sight, as a dog, a fly, or even another human. However, in a living form, demons were much easier to kill, and even easier to ward against. Jason highly disliked this form. He liked using the full extent of his powers, thank you very much. This was Tim's favorite.

There were a couple more lesser popular forms. A great big flying creature with horns and giant leathery wings. These demons had special powers in fire, but they usually had to stay in hell, as it is hard to hide like that. Though very powerful, fire demons had a very small reservoir of energy, and required a lot of rest. While they are hard to kill, they are quite easy to capture.

But the form Jason hated most was his Father's form. Only the most powerful of demons could have this form, whether they were pure-bloods or half-bloods. A mix between the shadow and living forms, this form was the form that provided the most power. With a near unlimited amount of energy and almost every power imaginable, the few rare demons that could wear this form usually had a high position in the demonic courts, such as Jason's Father. Jason could not wear this form, but he was glad. He didn't want to. Tim, however, could.

Jason was quite bitter about his Father. He hated that word. It was stupid. The word did not mean what the humans think it means. Instead, it is just the closest translation. But in the demonic world, only pure-blood demons have a Father or Mother and a Sire.

There are two way for a pure-blood demon to be born. When the greatest level of hatred is reached between two demons, the energies of the demons mix, and the youngest demon will spend the next 101 days in agony as a new demon is created. That was how Jason came to be.

His "Father" and his Sire hated each other so much that a demon was created out of that pure hatred.

And 98% of pure-blood demons were created this way.

But then, a few centuries between Jason's creation and Timothy's, something odd happened. Jason's Father and Sire came to an understanding, became friends, and then lovers. Demons do not love. Demons do not know of love. But once in a blue moon, two demons would fall in love. And if their "love" was great enough, a demon would also be created. But a demon created out of love is much more powerful than a demon created from pure hatred, of course. As usual, Jason drew the shorter end of the stick.

Tim was a favorite of both his Father and his Sire. He was the prized jewel of the hell, and heir to the throne after his Father.

Jason, on the other hand, while he was a prince, he was not good enough to be King. He didn't want to be king anyways. Being king would mean that he would be following in the footsteps of his Father, and that was the last thing he wanted.

"Of course he likes you!" Tim said, but he still grimaced. It was a well-known fact that the King of hell and its eldest prince did not get along. Whenever Jason went home for a visit, angry words could be heard all around. "Kind of."

 _Kind of?_

"Okay, he tolerates you. Sometimes," Tim said. "But Bruce likes you!"

If Jason could, he would have rolled his eyes. _Timmy, just admit it. I'm nobody's favorite. Give it up. I've come to terms with it already. Father hates me. Bruce tolerates me at best. _

Tim sighed. "I just don't get why you can't _try_ sometimes. You're still their son, Jason."

 _Don't use that word. Just because they created me, it does not mean that I need to have anything to do with them. Fuck their rules. Fuck what they think. I'm doing things my way._

Tim frowned. "It would be easier if you just _tried._ "

 _You have it easy, Tim. They love you almost as much as they love each other. It's disgusting to watch._ Tim gasped, his eyes full of hurt. Jason instantly felt bad. _I'm sorry, Tim. I didn't mean that._

Tim looked away. "Is that what you think? I didn't mean to rub it in your face or anything," he said quietly. "If it makes you feel any better, I have a lot of pressure on me, too. They want me to choose a partner before my millennium birthday. I have a year left to convince some poor human or demon to stay by my side forever."

Jason moved over to where Tim was standing, half hidden in the darkness of the warehouse. He gave Tim the best hug a blob of shadows could give.

 _Don't worry, Timmy. I believe you in. There isn't anything that's stopped you yet._

Tim smiled wryly. "Thanks, Jay. If anything, I hope you know that I love my big brother very much."

Jason would have smiled. He tried, but his shadow form didn't have a mouth. _Aw, Timmy. Love you, too, idiot._

* * *

CHAPTER 6

Dick woke up to the pleasant scents of fresh coffee and sizzling bacon. His stomach growled. Dick clambered out of bed, completely unaware that he was stark naked until a leather jacket slid out of his lap and onto the ground.

Dick stared at the jacket in horror. Connections were made in his mind. He pulled on a pair of sweatpants and ran into the kitchen.

Standing in his kitchen with a bright blue apron tied around his waist was the demon from last night. The demon was humming to himself, carefully keeping an eye on the bacon. Dick felt like he couldn't breathe, panic growing in his chest.

Immediately, the demon's head snapped up to look at Dick, sensing the pulsing fear radiating from the human.

The demon tosses a towel over his shoulder casually and took a slow step towards Dick. "Hi, Dick. Um, I don't know if you remember, but-"

Dick reacted the only way he could. His hands grabbed a large knife that was lying on the counter, and he held it in front of him with shaking hands. "Don't come closer!"

"Dick, please put the knife down," the demon spoke softly, holding his hands in front of him in a slight surrender. Still, he kept inching forward.

Dick backed up. "I mean it! Stop!"

"Dick, I know you're scared, and I'm _sorry_ about last night, okay?" He took another tentative step forward.

Dick stabbed him. The knife pierced into the demon's chest and blood started soaking his white shirt and the blue apron.

The demon sighed, looking down at the knife. He slowly pulled it out and set the knife down on the table. Dick watched in horror as his flesh slowly sewed itself together again and the blood in the cloth drew back into his body. The giant slit was still there though.

Dick turned to run, but the demon also rushed forward at the same time, catching him. Dick immediately went boneless.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," the demon said, pushing Dick into a chair, where he sat limply. The demon stood in front of Dick with guilty eyes for a moment before turning around and turned off the stove. He grabbed a plate and served the food onto a plate. The demon set the plate in front of Dick. "I made you breakfast. I noticed that you only had cereal in your pantry and practically nothing in your fridge, so I thought I could help you out a bit."

"I'm not eating anything you give me," Dick said, his voice wavering for a second.

The demon drew out another chair and sat across from Dick, their knees almost touching. "Look, I really am sorry about last night. I don't use my powers as often as I should, so they're a little strong at the moment. And I want to start over. Please. My name's Jason."

"And you're a demon."

"Yes," Jason said slowly. "But please hear me out. And eat. You're going to be tired." He picked up the plate and scooped up some scrambled eggs, holding it in front of Dick's face.

Dick glared at the food. "I'm not eating that." The fear and panic was slowly starting to drain away and it was being replaced by anger. "And how the hell are you in my house?"

Jason smirked at that. "How about this. I'll answer questions for each bite you eat."

"No, thanks. You could be poisoning me."

Jason shrugged. "Yes, but if I wanted you dead, it would not be hard. If I wanted to kidnap you, I could have done so last night. We got off to a bad start. I promise I'm not trying anything. But I did sap your energy twice now, so unless you get it back, you'll be very tired for the next few days."

Dick grunted, still glaring at Jason, but he tentatively ate the food. It was delicious, but Dick wasn't about to let Jason know that.

Jason brought the fork back to the plate. "The ingredients in your bags were old. They weren't as strong anymore. And besides, while those bags could keep out normal demons, it probably wouldn't hold me out for long. Not many things can."

Another forkful of food. Dick ate it. "What happened last night? I don't remember much. You showed up and everything was kind of hazy after that."

Jason looked guilty again. "As I said before, my powers are a bit stronger than normal from lack of use. I was intending only to use a little to make you more pliant and less panicky, but there was a slight overdose. It's um, incubus magic."

"Sorry?"

"An incubus is a male demon that feeds off sexual desire. They have certain powers that heightens sexual desire and makes humans more willing," Jason winced silently.

"So you drugged me essentially."

"I know it sounds harsh-"

"No! It's fucking ridiculous! You're practically a rapist!"

Jason frowned. "Okay, hey, that's too far. Nothing actually happened! I put you to sleep after I realized that you were dopey on hormones."

"Then how did I wake up naked?" Dick snapped.

"I thought it would be uncomfortable to sleep in those clothes and I didn't know whether or not you usually wore clothes to sleep!"

"And I'm supposed to believe that!"

"Yes! I haven't lied to you about anything so far!"

Dick huffed, wishing he had some more control over his limbs, but they felt so tired and he didn't want to move them at all. There was a long moment of silence.

"I still can't believe you," Dick finally said.

Jason frowned deeper. "But I-"

"I meant, I can't believe you did all that. It's… wrong."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know that. But in case it escaped your memory, I happen to be a demon. From hell. I don't really differentiate between wrong and right."

Dick met his glare. "Well, if you're going to be following me around, you will."

Jason scoffed, but he didn't say anything. He viciously stabbed a piece of bacon and held it up to Dick, who ate it just as angrily.

"Fine."

"Fine."

A bite of pancakes, drowned in syrup, just how Dick liked them.

"But I'm not doing your homework anymore."

Dick paused mid-chew. "You did my homework?"

Jason rolled his eyes. "Yeah. You were sleeping, and I didn't know when you'd wake up, so I finished your essay for you and turned it in. You're welcome."

Dick blinked, the anger disappearing. "Oh… thanks." He smiled a little. "The essay wasn't due for another day."

Jason glared at him. "Shut up and just be thankful, will you?"

Dick laughed. "Okay, okay. And you realize I am quite capable of eating by myself, right? Just…"

Jason snapped his fingers and Dick felt his energy surging back. He picked up the fork himself and started eating more quickly. Jason stood and poured Dick a cup of coffee, in his favorite mug, with a lot of cream and even more sugar.

Dick was slightly creeped out by the fact that Jason knew where all his things were and exactly how Dick preferred his coffee.

After breakfast, Dick decided that he need some time to himself to sort everything out mentally.

"I'm going for a run," he told Jason, who was drinking coffee. Steaming hot and black.

"Okay."

"You're… not going to follow me, are you?" Dick asked slowly.

"Unless you want me to?"

"No, thank you." Dick was slightly suspicious, but he decided that Jason really couldn't be that bad.

Dick headed down, and walked the short few blocks to the park and started jogging laps.

Dick knew that he shouldn't trust Jason, at all. But it didn't help that Dick was a really trusting person. Aside from the rough start, Jason seemed sincere enough. For a demon. Not that Dick could compare him to any other demons, seeing that Dick had never actually met any other demons.

Dick decided to ask Jason about that later.

Dick had broken out in a light sweat by the time he went back to his apartment. He had to steady and collect himself for a moment before entering. Whatever he was expecting, he was not expecting Jason to be lying on his couch on his stomach, reading one of Dick's textbooks. With glasses on.

"You know," Jason started, without looking up. "This is strangely interesting. You humans are so complex, and each individual part of you has a specific purpose, and each part is so strong. Yet, you're so delicate at the same time."

Dick was a little bewildered, not knowing how to respond. "Um, okay."

Jason closed the book and rolled over. "How was your run?"

"Good," Dick said. "Nice morning."

"Mm," Jason sat up and took off his glasses.

"Do you need glasses?"

"No," Jason said, incinerating the glasses right there and brushing the ashes onto the ground, much to Dick's annoyance. "They're just aesthetically pleasing."

"Also, why isn't my apartment freezing?" Dick wondered aloud.

"Ah, only my shadow form causes the chills. My other forms, including this one, aren't all that comfortable in cold temperatures," Jason said.

"You have more forms?"

Jason shrugged. "Sure. Most demons don't, but I'm special, I guess. Pure-blood demons have multiple forms and multiple powers. Half-blood demons don't. They only have one form and special powers that correlate with that form."

"So what's this form?" Dick ask, genuinely curious. He sat down in the love chair and pulled his legs up.

"My human form, duh. Demons that have this form have incubus or succubus magic. Personally, I think this form kind of sucks. It's one of the more popular but less powerful forms. This form allows demons to blend in well on earth and they feed of sexual desire, which doesn't taste all that good compared to fear, in my opinion." Jason flashed Dick a wicked smile that sent chills down Dick's back. "Don't worry, Dickie. I'm not particularly hungry for either."

"And the shadow demon thing?" Dick asked.

"That's my favorite. It requires the least amount of energy and in that form, demons are hard to kill, hard to catch, and hard to keep out. Sad thing is, shadow demons need to slowly build their power. The more fear they consume, the more powerful they become. I didn't need to go through all that, thankfully."

Dick looked alarmed.

"Yeah, I thought you might faint if I had gone through the bathroom door that night," Jason said with a chuckle.

"Shadow demons can move things telekinetically and obviously travel from place to place really quickly, like teleportation, but through shadows."

"Is that how I got home last night?" Dick asked, his voice slightly accusing.

Jason shrugged. "I thought it might have been suspicious for me to walk you back to your apartment while you were unconscious."

"It is your fault I was unconscious in the first place."

"I already said I'm sorry!"

The playful, but careful banter continued as Jason told Dick more about his species.

"…very few can obtain the last form. As far as I know, it's just the King, one of his advisors, and my brother."

"You brother?" Dick looked up. "You have a brother?"

Jason smiled a little, thinking of Tim. "Yeah. His name's Tim. Good kid. Or, at least as good as a demon can get, I guess. He's heir to the throne of hell, you know."

Dick blinked. "But that would make you a prince. Are you not the elder?"

"I am, but I'm not as powerful as Timothy. I don't want to be King anyway," Jason said, his lip curling into a sneer at the end.

The conversation soon drifted into more comfortable, casual waters. They exchanged outrageous stories of their childhoods, or in Jason's case, the past millennium of his life. Dick found that Jason was easy to laugh with. The demon had a sharp tongue and wit beyond measure.

While his smiles were a bit nerve-wrecking, they fit him quite well. Not to mention, Jason's human form was handsome. He had some of the prettiest eyes Dick had ever seen (those eyelashes were _luscious_ ). They were almost feminine, but somehow made his face seem manlier.

They talked through a lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches. And at Dick's insistence, Jason tried some of his own food. Dick could not believe that Jason never actually had a sandwich before. Sure, he drank water, alcohol, juice and whatnot, but Jason rarely ate any solid food. Last time he'd eaten anything, humans had just invented bread that wasn't rock hard.

Jason followed Dick to his afternoon classes, sitting in the back of the room and just listening to the professor. Later, he also went to the hospital with Dick, somehow finding a set of scrubs to wear as well.

They were a dark red, and damn, his arms looked really nice in them. Dick tried his best not to get distracted, but it was hard. No one noticed that Jason wasn't actually supposed to be there, but Dick supposed it was another hidden demon power of his, so he didn't say anything.

While Dick worked on whatever assignment he got that night, Jason finished the filing Dick did not complete the night before. Surprisingly, Jason was a diligent worker, not bothering Dick, which made Dick feel all the more guilty for getting distracted.

At one point, a young girl wandered into the office. She had a worn brown teddy bear in her arms and she was sucking on her thumb. Her hair was tied in two skewed pigtails, and her eyes were red-rimmed. A bright purple Band-Aid was visible under the frilly sleeves of her pink dress.

Dick approached her. "Hey, sweetheart. Are you lost? Where's your mommy?"

The girl just stared up at him with her slightly wet eyes. Then she looked over at Jason, who had slowed his filing to watch.

"Maybe she doesn't talk," Jason said with a shrug. "I don't know. When do human children start speaking?"

"Anywhere from six months to as old as three years old. She seems older than that."

Jason approached the kid as well and bent down to her level. A voice in the back of his head warned Dick that it may be a bad idea to let Jason near the child. Dick thought he would be proved right when Jason touched the girl's forehead.

Instead, the girl started laughing. She took her thumb out of her mouth and peals of laughter shook her.

Jason looked absolutely baffled. "Why is she laughing?" He asked Dick in alarm. "Is that normal? I couldn't read her mind, and she's laughing at me! Dick, fix this child!"

Dick started laughing as well. "She's just a kid. They're all like that. C'mon." He picked up the kid and started towards the hall, looking both ways before starting down the hall towards the pediatric wing. Jason followed behind him, narrowing his eyes at the child, who was still giving him a half-toothless smile.

She made a cooing sound and promptly dropped her bear on the ground. Dick didn't notice and continued walking. Jason bent down and picked up the bear. Its fur was matted and the color was fading. One of its eyes had obviously been sewn back on a couple times. And it seemed to be missing quite a bit of stuffing.

"Bubba! Bubba!" The girl started screaming and kicking, pointing at the bear in Jason's hands.

Dick turned around and frowned at him. "Jason! Give the girl back her bear."

"I didn't take the stupid stuffed animal!" Jason exclaimed, affronted.

Dick gave him another look, and Jason gave the girl her bear back. But she kept screaming. "Bubba!"

Suddenly, a lady turned the corner. "Oh, Sophie, dear! There you are!" She came over and took the girl from Dick's arms. "Thank you, mister. I told her not to run off. I'm sorry," the woman said, apologetically.

"Bubba!"

"Bubba's at home, Sophie," the lady told Sophie patiently.

The girl pointed at Jason with her slobbery hand. "Bubba!"

The lady looked at Jason and laughed lightly. "Oh, Sophie. That's not Bubba."

"Who's Bubba?" Dick asked with a smile, cooing at Sophie.

"Bubba is what she calls her brother, Bryan. Can't pronounce his name quite yet. She has a habit of calling every dark haired man or boy Bubba. Sorry again. Thank you!" She walked off with her daughter.

Dick and Jason started back down towards Dick's office.

"I don't like children," Jason decided.

Dick grinned. "Aw, but they're so cute! She liked you."

"She is a menace."

"You know, young children have a knack of telling whether or not someone is trustworthy. You must not be as big and bad as you think you are, Bubba."

Jason shoved Dick roughly. "Shut up."

Dick just laughed and shoved him back before tearing down the hall back to his office. Jason didn't even bother following him.

They decided to go out to dinner rather late. Dick insisted that Jason should try this small Italian restaurant a few blocks from the hospital. Jason had never tried Italian food, but it was apparently something Dick was passionate about.

"It's the most authentic Italian experience you can get in Gotham," Dick had said.

Jason wanted to prove him wrong, so he teleported the two of them to Italy. And they ate dinner at a family restaurant on the banks of the Tiber river. Jason didn't eat much, trying a little of everything Dick deemed "absolutely delicious, you have to try this, Jason". Dick stuffed himself.

And Jason was satisfied with the happy look on Dick's face as he ate _real_ Italian food.

It was another late night for Dick. And he had fallen asleep again, at his desk. Jason found a blanket and covered his shoulders, remembering how Dick disliked the cold.

He finished Dick's work for him and shut off the lights before teleporting them back to Dick's apartment.

This time, Jason put a pair of sweatpants on Dick, but left him shirtless. He pulled the blankets up to Dick's chin and brushed his dark hair out of his face. Jason watched Dick's chest rise and fall a couple times.

Jason leaned over and lightly brushed his lips against Dick's forehead, something he'd seem humans do after tucking someone into bed. He didn't really know what the point of that gesture was, but apparently it was sweet. And Dick seemed to like things with excessive amounts of sugar.

He looked at Dick's peaceful face for a moment longer before he smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Dickie," Jason whispered before melting into the shadows.

* * *

CHAPTER 7

Jason takes a rare trip home. He doesn't like calling it that. It wasn't home to him. Jason had no true home.

The palace in hell was majestic, but Jason hated it. He found it too big, too empty, and too cold, despite the pillars of hellish fire that surrounded the palace.

"Oh, look who decided to come back!" An overly cheerful voice said.

Jason's face contorted into a frown almost immediately. He whirled around, mentally preparing for an argument. His Father, King of hell, his royal Highness, a serial killer in his human life known as the Joker.

Jason waited as his Father glided over, the upper half of his body seemingly human. He was pale with electric green eyes. His hair was also green. Jason never knew why he wanted to keep that part of his human form. He thought the green hair was hideous.

The bottom half of his body was shrouded in shadows and he seemed to glide along the obsidian floors. The mass of shadows writhed and curled around him. Jason also saw the folded wings on his back. They were a dark purple, leathery and deathly powerful.

"Joker."

"Is that any way to talk to the king, Jason?"

"You're not my king."

The Joker put on a mock thoughtful face. "Oh, but I am. And, I'm your Father, you ungrateful brat. I can easily kill you."

"But you won't."

"But I will."

"You'll anger Bruce."

Joker's lips curled into a sneer and the shadows around him grew thicker and heavier. His wings twitched behind him as well. "You really think Bruce cares about _you_? If you were Timothy, it may be a different question, but you?"

It hurt, it did, but Jason had enough practice not to let it show. "We might not see eye to eye, but Bruce cares enough not to let you kill me."

The Joker snarled. "I think you need to be taught a lesson. In case you forgot, you haven't completed your ritual yet. You're are not _truly_ a demon, even if you are a pure-blood."

Jason held his head high. "And I will complete my ritual soon. I have three weeks left."

"Three weeks is a lot shorter than it seems, Jason."

"It's more time than I need," Jason said.

Joker's face lit up with evil intent. "Oh, really? Well, in that case, you can spend some time at home." With a flick of a long finger, Jason found himself teleported into his room and locked in.

Growling angrily, Jason knew he was pretty much trapped. Because he had not completed the ritual that was sort of like an initiation to true demon-hood, his Father and his Sire still had power over him. He didn't have his freedom quite yet.

And for now, he was stuck here.

He really hated coming home.

* * *

Dick woke up to a silent apartment. He knew immediately that Jason was not there. It alarmed him quite a bit to instinctively feel that. But it was too early in the morning to ponder such things.

He got dressed and drank a cup of coffee before he decided to start on schoolwork. Only to find out that it was all finished. Dick smiled a little but decided to let Jason know next time not to do Dick's homework when he was bored. Dick would never actually pass the class if he did that.

But since he had another morning to himself, he decided to go visit Damian and update his friend on his life. He had just arrived in front of the door when it was yanked open. Damian stood there, his hair rumpled and dark circles were under his eyes. He was wearing silk pajama pants but not shirt. And he was glaring at Dick.

"What?" Damian snapped.

"Um," Dick blinked a couple times. "How did you know I was here?"

Damian glared harder. "You were singing. Loudly."

"Oh," Dick said, not realizing that he had been singing at the top of his lungs. "Sorry. Can I come in?"

"Do I have a choice?" Damian asked as he stepped aside and Dick pranced into his house. "I hope you didn't come to talk about another nightmare of yours. Though, judging by your behavior, you have good news. Dear god, I cannot deal with good news right now. I'm going back to bed."

Dick whined, so instead, Damian made coffee instead and after he had his first cup did he allow Dick to talk.

"So I made a new friend," Dick said. "Well, I think I can consider him my friend. But I don't doubt that if you asked him, he'd deny it. It's just the kind of person he is," Dick said, munching on a bowl of dry cereal.

Damian was halfway through his second cup of black coffee. "He's get along great with me then. I find your presence sickening as well."

"He doesn't find my presence sickening, Dami, unlike you and your horrible attitude."

"Tt."

"Remember that thing haunting my apartment?"

"What, you befriended it?" Damian asked sarcastically.

"Yeah, actually."

Damian took a really long sip of coffee, draining the rest of his cup. "Sorry, must've misheard you. I'm afraid you were speaking idiotic again, Grayson."

"No, really. There was a demon in my apartment, and he honestly scared me at first, but now that I've gotten to know him a bit, I think he's kind of a sweetheart inside. He took me to Italy last night. We had dinner on the banks of the Tiber River."

Damian stared at Dick with an unamused expression and started on his third cup of coffee. This time, he also poured Dick a cup, and pushed the cream and sugar over to him as well.

"I already had my coffee this morning," Dick said confused. Damian knew that he only drank one cup of coffee each day if not at all, not wanting to get addicted to the drink.

"Have another cup. You might still be asleep. It's a miracle you made it all the way here."

Dick pouted. "You don't believe me?"

"No, I really have a hard time believing you, Grayson. You just told me that you had a date with a demon that was haunting your apartment."

Dick sighed. "It's outrageous, I know. But it's true. His name's Jason. And he's really handsome. And strong. And sweet. But kind of clueless. He's really knowledgeable, like he did my homework the past two nights, and he's a brilliant cook, but he knows nothing about children, or clothes, or food. It's really funny."

"You sound sick, Grayson."

Dick was a bit offended. "I'm pretty sure I would know if I were sick, Damian. I'm studying to be a doctor, remember?"

"Lovesick."

That stopped Dick. Sure, he trusted easily, and he found people generally appealing and thought Jason was kind of really handsome, but love? That's preposterous.

So he laughed. And he laughed and he laughed.

Damian didn't even crack a smile. He just waited for Dick to stop laughing and started on his fourth cup of coffee, deciding to treat himself, seeing that he had to be sane for two people.

Dick left Damian's penthouse a little before lunch, picking up a sandwich before going to his classes. Though Jason wasn't there to be a distraction today, Dick found himself having a hard time concentrating either way. He was slightly worried. Obviously Jason had other things to attend to, but Dick _was_ a bit clingy.

Then, that night at work, there was a light knock on his door.

Dick looked up from his computer. "Jason!"

"Hey, Dickiebird," Jason said with a cocky smile. "Miss me?"

"Missed your cooking, if anything. Where did you go? I didn't have anyone to feed me!" Dick said with an exaggerated whine.

Jason stepped in and sat on Dick's desk. "Sorry. I had to go… home, for a while. Got caught up with something." Jason looked slightly uncomfortable about it, so Dick decided not to pry.

Instead, Dick smiled at him. "Hey, I'm almost done here. So once I finish, maybe we can go get some food? I know it's late and you don't really like food, but indulge me. You owe me."

Jason relaxed a bit. "Yeah, okay."

An hour later, they two walked towards Dick's apartment, deciding to stop at a small 24 hour burger shop. Dick ordered burgers and fries and milkshakes and they sat in a tiny booth by the window. The shop was void of any other people and there was only one person behind the counter and he had left into the kitchens.

"You don't like the fries?!" Dick exclaimed, eating three at a time, drowned in the red ketchup. "Try one more, maybe it's an acquired taste." Dick shoved two limp fries at Jason's lips, smearing the ketchup across his mouth.

Jason sighed and opened his mouth, letting Dick shove the fries in. He chewed mechanically, wincing as he tasted the oil oozing from the potatoes.

"Disgusting," he commented once he swallowed. "Definitely not an acquired taste."

Dick pouted. "Try some without ketchup." He held up a couple more. Jason shook his head but Dick pushed the pieces against his mouth until Jason ate it.

"Too much oil."

Dick made a face at Jason. "You're weird. Who doesn't like fries?"

Jason laughed humorlessly. "I haven't found any food that I've liked so far. It would be a miracle if you were to find one."

Dick sipped his melted milkshake thoughtfully. "I'll keep that in mind. Now try my shake. It's chocolate and peanut butter."

Jason mentally resigned himself to being force fed foods in Dick Grayson's presence for the rest of his demonic life.

As he was sipping the chunky and thick liquid through the giant straw, Jason noticed movement across the street. Allowing a bit of his powers to flow, Jason's eyesight sharpened beyond those of a normal human's. Jason swallowed the sticky drink and his lips hardened into a thin line.

"It couldn't have been that bad, right? Definitely not as bad as the fries?" Dick asked hopefully, not sensing Jason's change in demeanor.

Jason turned to Dick. "I need to go use the restroom, I'll be right back, okay?" He gave Dick a reassuring smile.

Dick nodded. As Jason walked off towards the bathrooms, he called after him, "It wouldn't hurt my feelings if you said it was bad!"

Once inside the bathrooms, Jason teleported. Across the street and into the darkened alleyway. He looked behind him and saw Dick absently eating fries as he waited for Jason to return from the restroom.

"Do you know how suspicious you look?" Jason asked, turning to face the figure hidden in the darkness.

Tim stepped forward. He was dressed in a long, tan trench coat with the collars pulled up. He had a fedora on, and it was tipped forward to conceal his face.

"It's not Halloween yet, Timmy," Jason said.

Tim looked up, unamused. "Father knows you escaped."

"So?"

"He's angry."

"And?"

"And Bruce is also pretty upset. They demanded that I bring you home immediately."

"If I refuse?"

Tim didn't respond. But the way his eyes flickered to Dick, Jason knew.

"Oh, fuck no," Jason said, standing up taller, blocking Tim's view. "You can't tell them."

Tim looked up at Jason sadly. "Even if I don't say anything, they'll manage to get it out of me. You know that. I can only keep your secret for so long."

Jason stayed silent for a long time. He finally let out the breath he had been holding. "Okay," he whispered. "Just let me say good-bye really quick." At Tim's nod, Jason teleported back into the bathrooms. He stood in front of the mirrors for a moment before heading back.

His smile faltered for a moment when he saw Dick's face light up as he approached. Jason sat down in his seat and swallowed.

"Dick," he said, sounding a bit hoarse.

Dick's smile faded slowly. "What?"

"I-I have to go. I'm sorry," Jason said. "There's… an emergency I need to attend to. But I promise I'll be back as soon as I can get away, okay?"

Dick nodded, ever the understanding one. "Of course."

Jason stared at Dick for another moment longer and he nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Dick." He stood and grabbed his leather jacket. He turned to go, but Dick also stood up and grabbed his shoulder. Dick's other hand gripped the front of his t-shirt tightly and pulled Jason into a kiss.

Jason was too shocked to react at first. But then, he kissed Dick back with a fierce intensity. It wasn't a deep kiss, just lips on lips, but it left Dick breathless.

"Come back for me soon," Dick whispered in Jason's ear.

Jason gave him one of those scarily handsome smiles. "Promise," he said.

Then Jason was gone.

* * *

There were few things that could hurt demons, especially pure-blood demons, really, really badly. One of them, hellfire from the deepest pits.

As soon as he stepped foot into the palace, Jason's energy had been sapped completely. He couldn't even walk, let alone hold his human form. He yelled and crashed to the ground, his human form quickly melting away to shadows.

Before Jason could wrap his head around what was happening, he had been trapped and was placed in a warded room, hung over the vengeful flames of hellfire.

The feeling was indescribable. It was worse than being burned alive. When you're burned alive, you'll eventually die. But Jason wouldn't die. But he was powerless as well. He couldn't escape as the fire consumed his entire being without actually consuming him.

Jason was hung in the chamber for three days and three nights, but it seemed like a century for Jason. At one point, he wished he _could_ die. He really did. Anything would be worse than the pain.

After he was removed from the chamber, Jason couldn't move. He had no strength, so he could not heal himself. He could only lie there silently, screaming in his head, but without any energy to scream out loud anymore. He also did not possess the capability to sleep, so Jason stayed awake through the entire thing.

The Joker came to visit him once; only threatening to repeat that treatment, for longer periods of time should Jason tried disobeying again.

Jason wanted to tell him that he could try. At this point, Jason could still feel the flames licking at him, and without the constant burning of the flames, he had to deal with the pain of the wounds, which may have hurt worse.

Oh, how Jason _hated_ going home.

* * *

CHAPTER 8

It had been almost a week since Dick had seen Jason. Surely an emergency wouldn't take such a long time, right?

Worries actively ate at Dick day in and day out. What if Jason had lied about there being an emergency and had just decided that Dick was too much to deal with? What if Jason just liked playing with Dick's emotions? What if Dick had scared him off with the kiss?

The morning of the sixth day, Dick found himself drinking a second cup of coffee, black.

He went through his day in the same daze as the past week. He found himself sorely missing Jason's bantering and jokes. He yearned for their lunch or dinner dates where the world seemed like it was just the two of them.

Halfway through his class, Dick realized that Damian had been right. He was in love.

For the rest of the day, he drifted in and out of moments of giddiness and bouts of depression.

When he finally arrived home, Dick was an emotional mess. He was exhausted and was so glad for the weekend. He was so out of it, he didn't notice the body lying on the ground in front of his bedroom until he nearly stepped on it.

Dick screamed and quickly bent down.

"Oh my god, Jason?!" Dick turned Jason over, feeling for a heartbeat. He cupped Jason's face, gasping when he felt how cool Jason's skin was feeling.

Jason's eyes fluttered open, but only half-lidded. The corner of his mouth twitched. "'ey, 'ickie," he said, the sound barely reaching Dick's ears.

"What's wrong, Jason? Are you dying? Don't die, please don't die, Jay," Dick clutched Jason's t-shirt in his fists.

"Hurts," Jason whispered, nearly silently. "Ev'rythin' hurts."

Tears welled up in Dick's eyes. He silently cursed his overstimulated emotions. "C'mon, let's get you to bed." Dick lifted Jason into his arms and moved him to his bed. "What happened, Jay? You seem fine," Dick said after a quick examination of Jason's body.

Jason's breathing was shallow, so shallow his chest barely moved. His heartbeat was also slow and nearly nonexistent.

"No… 'nergy," Jason whispered. "Can't heal… pro'erly."

Dick took Jason's hand. "Fear, right? You feed off fear?" He put Jason's hand on his chest. "You feel that? I'm fucking terrified right now because I don't know what's wrong with you, and I know nothing about demon biology. Damn it, Jason, don't die."

"Not… gonna die," Jason said, the corner of his lip twitching again. "Just… time."

Dick watched as Jason's eyes slid shut, but he knew Jason wasn't asleep. Dick wasn't kidding when he said he was terrified. His own hands were shaking and his heart was racing fast enough for the both of them.

Dick pressed Jason's hand to his lips, holding it there, and it was then that Dick seemed to understand what Jason mean when he said that humans were made of things so strong, yet put together, so delicate.

Then it hit him. "Shadows, Jason! You said holding a shadow for requires the least amount of energy, yes? Can you change forms?"

Jason's eyes flickered open again. "Shadows… cold. You… don't like… cold, 'member?"

Dick nearly sobbed at his stupidity. "I don't care, Jason. If you're not okay, don't worry about me. I can deal with the cold. If you were holding this form for me, I _will_ hit you later, when you get better. Take care of yourself first, okay? Please."

Jason didn't respond, but the hand in Dick's hands quickly disappeared. Jason's human form disappeared. Instead, there was a large pool of shadows hovering over Dick's bed.

In this form, Dick could see that how bad it was. The shadows weren't opaque; instead they were wispy and quite transparent, like a light fog. The color was also pale. And Dick knew that Jason's shadows curled around each other like a thundercloud rolling in over a city, thick and heavy.

The shadows now occupying Dick's bed looked like they could be blown away if Dick even breathed. They were unmoving.

That was the start of the most stressful nights of Dick's life. He sat by Jason the entire night, occasionally drifting off to sleep, but he was determined to stay there for Jason. He had bundled up in clothes and had two blankets pulled tightly around him.

All throughout the next day, Dick rarely left his room. He drank four cups of coffee. And Dick felt so useless sitting there, so he started talking. He talked to Jason about his dreams and ambitions. He told Jason about things he did when he was younger. He told Jason about Damian.

At one point, Dick mused aloud whether or not he should go eat. He was about to decide against it when the shadows quivered.

"Okay, okay, I'll go eat. But take of yourself first, right?" Dick said, watching as the shadows settled again. They did not look any better. Dick worried more.

He made a sandwich, but it tasted like cardboard. He wished Jason made it.

Then, there was a knock at his door. Dick let the half eaten sandwich and went to go answer the door. He knew he looked like a mess, but he didn't care.

"Yes?" Dick looked blankly at the man standing in front of his door, who stared back just as blankly.

"Richard Grayson?"

"Yes, that's me," Dick answered.

"I need to see him."

"Sorry?" Dick asked, shifting himself to block the man's view of his apartment. "Who?"

The man sighed. "I can help him." Then, under his breath. "Should've known he'd come to a human first."

Dick found himself stumbling out of the way and following the man into his bedroom. The man stopped at the doorway, and for a split second, Dick thought he had made the wrong assumption.

"I can explain-" he started.

"Don't," he man said. "It's your fault he's here in the first place." The man strode over to Dick's bedside and sat Dick's chair. He placed both hands above the shadows and his face contorted in concentration.

Dick watched in amazement as Jason's shadows condensed and his human form appeared slowly. Jason's breathing was still slower than normal, but it was deeper and he looked a lot better than before.

The man frowned at Jason's resting form. "You're an absolute idiot, Jason. You should've stayed to heal first," he told him before turning around to face Dick again. "He needs rest. He is okay now, but he still has a lot of energy to make up for."

"Wait, who are you?" Dick asked as the man started to leave.

The man rolled his eyes. "Typical. I wouldn't expect Jason to have told you about me." He held out his hand. "Tim, that idiot's brother."

Dick was surprised, but he slowly shook Tim's hand. "He did tell me about you, actually."

Tim looked mildly surprised. "Well, Jason's never failed to surprise me. Take care of him."

With that, Tim was gone.

A few moments later, Jason shifted in the bed. "Dickie?"

Dick rushed to his side. "Jason? You're okay, Tim said you're okay."

Jason chuckled weakly, sitting up.

"Hey, hey, hey," Dick held out his hands to steady him. "Don't overexert yourself."

Jason rolled his eyes. "I'm fine," he said. "I just can't use my powers." He ran a hand through his hair. That's when Dick noticed it was different.

"Your hair…" Dick said.

Jason looked up at him. "What?"

"There's a… white streak in your hair. That wasn't there last night," Dick said.

Jason pulled his hair down, his pretty blue eyes crossing as he tried to see what Dick was talking about. "Ah," he finally said, letting the streak flop down over his face. "I believe that's a souvenir from the hellfire."

"Hellfire?"

"One of the only things that can hurt me badly without killing me," Jason quickly explained. "And those things always leave some sort of physical reminder. I'm just glad it wasn't a horrible scar of some sort."

Dick laughed, his voice sounding a bit hysterical. "You really are an idiot, Jason," Dick muttered. Then he surged forward and kissed him, hard.

Jason pulled back and laughed. "What, missed me?" He asked. And unlike the first two time Jason asked that question, Dick could 100% answer yes this time.

Dick smiled weakly and pushed Jason back into the bed. "So much," he whispered against Jason's lips.

Jason finally seemed to realize where this was leading, and he reached up, wrapping his arms around Dick's neck, pulling him down against him. It was gradual, and Dick didn't notice it at first, but it soon became too evident to ignore.

Everything about Jason was just so… _good._ He tasted good, he smell good, he looked good, and Dick just couldn't get enough. Dick kissed Jason harshly, teeth clashing, lips bruising, and tasting each other.

Jason's scent was intoxicating.

Intoxicating.

Dick pulled back, smiling weakly, his pupils blown and his mind hazy. "I thought you said you couldn't use your powers?"

Jason looked so sexy, lying under Dick, muscles hidden only by a thin t-shirt. "I'm not," Jason said breathily. "You are."

Dick kissed him hard again, the two of them clashing until Dick had to come back up for air. "What do you mean?"

Tongue against tongue, teeth against teeth. Were Jason's teeth always that sharp? Dick licked away a tiny drop of blood from his lip. Jason looked obscene. Dick knew he probably looked the same way.

"You're drawing on my powers. Not me," Jason said. He almost sounded awed. "I didn't know humans could do that."

Dick groaned, straddling Jason before diving in again.

"You have too many clothes," Jason whispered, pulling at Dick's GMU sweatshirt. Dick quickly shed it, taking off his shirt as well.

"It's not hurting you, right? Because you're supposed to be healing," Dick said, tugging Jason's shirt over his head as well. He placed his hand on Jason's bare chest, tracing the solid muscles and taut flesh, his fingers circling Jason's nipples, his thumb flicking at them.

Jason groaned, pressed his hips up against Dick. "Ugh, no, I don't think so. If anything, I feel better."

Dick threw his head back and laughed loudly. "Right, forgot. You also feed of sexual desire. Well, I can gladly say that I have a lot of that right now." Dick traced the solid lines of Jason's muscles with his tongue, swirling around each of his nipples and down to his jeans. He slowly tugged the pants down, letting Jason kick them off.

Dick's eyes widened when he saw that Jason wasn't wearing underneath. Jason smirked at him. He traced a calloused hand down Dick's spine, hooking a finger into the waistband of his sweatpants. But instead of tugging them down, Dick watched as gentle flames licked the cloth away, but not his skin.

His cock throbbed hard at that sight.

"Grey isn't really my color anyways," Dick said, his voice thick. He decided not to comment on the fact that Jason wasn't supposed to be using his powers.

"Mm," Jason agreed, licking his lips. "I don't think clothes suit you at all, Dickiebird."

"Jason, I want you."

"Yes, I gathered as much, Dick. Thank you for your insightful, but painfully obvious, conclusion."

"Shut up, Jay. Need lube. And a condom," Dick said, his hands running up Jason's thighs and cupping his balls. Jason groaned.

"I'll-I'll pretend I know what those are."

Dick shot him a dirty look and reached under his bed, pulling out a small box and extracting a bottle of lube and a small square. Dick worked quickly, opening himself up, one finger, then two, then a third.

In no time, he was panting. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Fuck, that was hot, Dickie," Jason said. "I'm over a millennium year old, but I've never seen anyone like you before."

Dick managed a smile, but it faltered as he hit a spot inside him. Reluctantly taking his fingers out of himself, Dick pulled the condom over Jason's cock, stroking it a few times before straddling him again. He lined himself up and looked at Jason.

Their eyes met, blue with blue. Dick gasped in surprise as he sank down, slowly. As he adjusted to Jason's length, it felt so right.

Dick felt like he _belonged_ there. Not necessarily on Jason's cock, but with Jason. By Jason's side for the rest of eternity. With Jason's scent clogging up all his senses. Feeling Jason, inside and out.

When he started moving, Dick planted his hands on Jason's chest, holding his eyes, never letting go. He felt like he could get lost in that moment, in Jason's eyes. There was a whole other universe to be explored, and even if it would take forever, Dick was willing to.

Dick gasped each time Jason's cock dragged over his sweet spot, still going slowly.

Finally, Jason reached up and grabbed Dick's hips, pushing him down. "No more teasing," he said, breathlessly.

Dick nodded, fully agreeing before he started riding him fast and hard. Dick's fingers gripped Jason's hips tightly, and Jason returned the gesture. At that quick pace, Dick soon felt the heat pooling, filling him, bringing him to the brim, and finally spilling over.

Dick threw his head back, moaning loudly as he came, his nails digging into Jason's flesh. Jason took over, slamming up into Dick over and over again, grunting shortly each time, chasing his own orgasm.

Dick looked back down at Jason as he rode out the aftershocks and saw that Jason's eyes looked almost crazed with lust. Dick wouldn't be surprised if he started frothing at the mouth.

But then Jason came with a low groan, the sound traveling through his whole body. As Jason rode out his own orgasm, it hit Dick. The most delicious scent radiating from Jason in waves. Dick's eyes rolled to the back of his head as he bathed in the glorious, euphoric scent. It was very different from the scent Jason had smelled like before. That paled in comparison to this.

Dick breathed it in like a starved man. If asked to describe the scent, Dick would not be able to. It just smelled so… _Jason._

But as Jason came down from his high, the scent also started disappearing. Dick's head started clearing as well. He groaned as he lifted himself off of Jason, lying on his back and weakly instructing his demon lover what to do with the used condom, which would be awkward in any other case, but it was slightly endearing.

When Jason came back, Dick was nearly asleep, only opening his eyes long enough for Jason to slip into bed next to him, and curling up in his chest.

Dick was drifting off into well-deserved sleep when he heard Jason whispered into his hair, "Sleep, my Dickiebird. I'll watch over you this time."

And so Dick slept.

* * *

CHAPTER 9

"Walk with me, Jason."

Jason glared at Bruce's retreating back for a while before sighing and following him. Of course Bruce had somehow found him. They walked through Gotham City Park, and no one paid them any attention.

"You are aware that your initiation is in a week and four days, yes?" Bruce asked.

"I'm aware," Jason said, not bothering to hide his grumpiness.

"And you don't seem to be prepared. Have you prepared accordingly?"

Jason frowned at the back of Bruce's head. "Yes, I have prepared. But of course you wouldn't know. If you cared, you would know."

Bruce shot him a cold look over his shoulder. "You know, it's that mouth of yours that earns you all those unpleasant punishments."

Jason rolled his eyes, glaring harder. He wanted to burn a hole in the back of Bruce's head, but it probably wouldn't hurt him anyways, so there was no point in trying. "I don't see why you care. If you dislike me so much, you really should just let Joker do what he wants."

"He's the King. He does what he wants anyways," Bruce said.

"But he also listens to you. You know that you're the only reason I'm not dead, right?" Jason asked, knowing fully well that Bruce also knew fully well, but he wanted to hear it.

"Yes, I know that. And I don't want him to kill you," Bruce said.

"Could've fooled me," Jason muttered.

Bruce shot him another glare. "Watch that mouth. Just because I've protected you from him, doesn't mean I won't allow him to punish you as he sees fit."

"But most of all, I don't understand how you can love such a person!" Jason finally said. "He was a serial killer, and now he rules hell. Do you know how crazy bad you have to be in order to accomplish that? Adolf Hitler killed more people than he did, and Hitler is now a demon working in the fire pits, torturing souls!"

Bruce finally rounded on Jason. "I despised him," he hissed. "There was a time where I would have given anything to get rid of him."

Jason snorted. "Trust me, I know. I happened, remember?" Jason crossed his arms. "But then there's Tim. While I'm glad for the kid, he should not have happened. He's the product of your _undying_ love for that incarnation of pure evil, Bruce."

Bruce just fixed him with a cold glare. "You wouldn't understand."

"No, I wouldn't. Because I don't fall in love with the most evil thing around," Jason said.

"I was in love once," Bruce said. "Before him. When I was a human. There was a man. We were forbidden to have each other so we eloped. And he was a really good person. Had he not died, I probably wouldn't be here now."

Jason paused for a moment. "What happened to him?" He asked softly.

"Sacrificed himself for me," Bruce murmured, his eyes losing its hardness and he seemed faraway then. "And because he was such a good guy, he was reborn. And in every life, he was just as good as the life before."

"So you still keep tabs on him?" Jason asked.

"Every once in a while."

"And Joker doesn't know."

"He doesn't know."

Jason smiled a little. "I'm sorry, Bruce."

The older demon glared at Jason. "I don't need your pity, Jason."

"No, not pity. I'm apologizing for being a brat sometimes. I realize that who I am isn't your fault. And while I don't agree with you, I trust you know what you're doing," Jason said begrudgingly. "But you don't need to keep tabs on me like you do your secret lover," Bruce's eyes flashed darkly at that. "I can take care of myself."

Bruce stared at him for a moment and nodded. "So you've chosen, then?"

Jason swallowed and nodded. "Yeah. His name's Dick. Grayson, Dick Grayson."

"And he suspects nothing?"

Jason winced. "Well, he knows I'm a demon. But nothing else."

Bruce's lips thinned a little. "Make sure to keep it that way. A week and four days, Jason." Bruce walked away, and Jason watched him go.

Jason sighed loudly to himself. "A week and four days."

* * *

CHAPTER 10

For three days, Jason stays far from Dick. He knew that Dick would probably blame himself, but Jason needed some time alone. For a whole day and a half, Jason sat on top of a cliff overlooking a hidden waterfall in the Amazon Rainforest, completely unmoving. He felt the sun rise behind him, crawl slowly above his head, and finally set in front of his eyes. Then the starts came out to play, chasing the moon.

Jason tried to decide what to do next.

The initiation was a process every powerful demon had to go through. All pure-blood demons and most exceptional half-blood demons went through the initiation that proved that they were loyal to their species through and through.

They had to manipulate a human being into trusting them. Usually, that was the harder part. It was especially difficult for demons that only had one form. But most succeed and they earn a human's trust. Then, on the day of their initiation, the demon must bring the human in, kill the human and drink its blood. That was the _easy_ part.

Originally, Jason chose Dick because he thought no one would miss him. But Jason realized that someone would. He would. As he started earning Dick's trust, at first, it was for the ritual. Then, Dick started surprising him. He starting doing things that made Jason's heart skip a beat, make smiles curl onto his lips without him realizing it.

It got to a point where Jason could sit through a conversation with Dick, not hear a single word he was saying, but still find the conversation interesting because of the ways that Dick's mouth would move when he spoke, the way he would use his hands to gesture, and the way his eyes would light up in excitement.

Jason knew it was all going downhill when he immediately assumed that Dick would get hurt if Jason did not go with Tim. But Jason didn't care. He would do it all over again, for Dick. For a silly human being who was the most amazing creature Jason has ever known in all his millennium and a half of life.

Which only made it so much harder.

Jason was out of time. He couldn't find another sacrifice.

Finally, halfway through the second day, when the hot sun was beating down on his skin and sweat started building around his hairline, Jason got it.

It was an old rumor among demons.

That there had once been an demon who had fallen in love with his sacrifice, a beautiful human girl who was also married. The demon didn't want to lose the girl, so he told her the truth. The girl firmly believed that their love exceeds everything. So she agreed to participate in the ritual.

And she had died. But she came back to life because her selfless sacrifice was an act of great love, even if it was for a demon. There is not proof of this story, but at that moment, it was the hope that Jason held on to.

He teleported straight to Dick's room, knowing that Dick would be heading to class soon.

Dick was eating lunch in his kitchen when Jason popped in.

"Dick!"

"Jay? What's wrong?" Dick scanned over him, worriedly. "Are you okay?"

Jason swallowed hard. "We need to talk."

"I have class in ten minutes. Can this wait?" Dick asked. But as he looked at Jason, he knew the answer.

"No, it can't."

"Okay, sit. Spill." Dick felt like Damian. "What prompted you to disappear for three days and then come back?"

Jason took a deep breath, not sure where to start.

"I lied."

Dick blinked. "Okay… elaborate."

Jason looked at Dick with pleading eyes. "I'm so sorry, Dick. I promise, I don't think this anymore, not anymore. Dick, don't get mad, please-"

Dick's eyes narrowed. "What is it, Jason?" His voice grew colder.

"Dick…" Jason clasped his hands together. "In about a week, I have to participate in an initiation ritual. And in the ritual, I-I have to essentially kidnap and kill a human." He bit his lip as he watched the information sink in, distrust and betrayal growing in Dick's eyes. "I need to gain your trust at first, but not anymore. Please, you have to believe me. I like you, Dick."

"So what," Dick asked, his voice bitter. "You decide to spare me from the gruesome fate?"

Jason looked away in shame.

"Oh! Not even!" Dick laughed, the sound hollow and cold. "You're still planning on using me? Fuck you, Jason. I thought you were different. Guess not. After all, you are a demon."

Jason looked up, hurt. "No, Dickie. Please, you have to believe me. I think there's a way around you dying."

Dick stood and narrowed his eyes. "No, Jason! You betrayed my trust. I don't care what happens now. You can leave now. I don't want to see you again."

Jason followed Dick to the door but he didn't leave when Dick opened it.

"Dickiebird…"

"Go, Jason."

Jason opened his mouth to say something else, but Dick shook his head.

"I can't believe I ever trusted you. You disgust me," Dick whispered at Jason before shutting the door.

* * *

CHAPTER 11

Jason was feeling surprisingly calm. Well, he wasn't really feeling _anything_ , but calm was the best word for it.

It was the day of his initiation, and Jason was sitting in a bathtub of water, knees pulled up to his chest and he just sat there.

Twice now, one of the demons that were supposed to prepare him for the ritual had knocked on the bathroom door, telling Jason that he had to hurry up.

Once the steaming water had become cold and his skin had become prune-like, Jason walked out of the bathroom, his feet leaving puddles of water everywhere he stepped.

Immediately, he was tackled with a large towel, one that magically dried his hair and his skin, and his shriveled fingers returned to normal. Jason sighed, and let two shadow demons float around him, placing a black robe on his shoulders and letting the light fabric flow all the way to the ground and behind him.

It reminded Jason of a wedding train, except he was not going to be walking up an aisle to the love of his life.

He would be walking to his death today.

The demons finally finished arranging his hair and smoothing out wrinkles in his robe. They left quickly, giving Jason a few minutes to collect himself before someone came to get him.

There was a knock on the door, and it opened, revealing Tim.

Tim, the best brother and the only confidant Jason has ever had. Jason sudden spears of emotion pierce through him. He'd never see Tim again.

"Hey, Jay," Tim said, stepping in. He was also wearing formal robes, but they were less elegant than Jason's. "How're you feeling? Nervous?"

Jason shrugged.

"I'm sorry you have to do this, Jay," Tim said, and Jason knew he was being sincere. "Really. I want nothing more than for you to be happy. And if I'm not wrong, Richard did make you happy."

Jason nodded. Tim didn't know. Of course Tim didn't know. No one knew. Jason didn't tell anyone at all. The past week, he had been hiding, traveling all over the world, visiting all the places Dick had once told him he wanted to go before he died.

Jason never really had any dream or ambitions. He thought he had all the time in the world. He didn't need to worry. And suddenly, the end is here. And there were no fireworks, no explosions, nothing.

Just himself against the world.

"You okay, Jason?" Tim asked. "I get that you're nervous. You'll do fine, I know it. There's nothing you can't do."

Jason gave him a smile that he hoped didn't look absolutely heart-wrenching, which was how he felt right now.

"Thanks, Timmy," Jason said softly. "Really. Means a lot." Jason swallowed hard. "I think I have to go now, but hey…" he took a deep breath to steady himself. "Good luck, okay, kid? You'll do great. I'm sure of it. You'll make me proud."

Jason kissed the top of Tim's head and walked out of the room, leaving a rather confused Tim behind, staring after him and seriously wondering what the hell is wrong with Jason.

Jason walked slowly towards the court room, in which the initiation was to happen, in front of the entirety of the demonic court. Everyone of power would be there, watching and judging Jason's every move.

But somehow, Jason wasn't afraid.

He walked with his back straight, his breathing even, his eyes straight ahead and blank. He reached the looming onyx doors of the court room. He nodded at the two guard demons at the door, and they pulled it open. Jason stepped in and did not stop to look around until he was at the center of the circular room. The room was a perfect circle, its walls looming up a hundred feet before arching and meeting at the center. A chandelier of pure hellfire lit up the room. Balconies were stationed on the walls of the room, and they were all filled with demons of high power. And right in front of him, was his Father.

He was wearing a rich, dark purple robe and with a blood red trim. A tall crown stood on his head, nearly covering all of his green hair. He was twirling a gold staff in his nimble fingers, and he smirked down at Jason, who met his eyes without fear.

Bruce sat beside him, looking almost bored. He sat up straight, as if someone had rammed a stick up his ass, and he looked at Jason, but did not seem to acknowledge him in any way. Tim, who should have been standing beside them like the perfect son, was absent.

At that moment, the fires in the room seemed to dim, and the only ones that stayed bright acted as a spotlight for Jason.

"May you please us all, Jason, as you complete this ritual that will mark you as a loyal member of our species for eternity. May the fiery pits of hell find favor in your offering," Joker said, his voice carrying throughout the room, bold and clear.

The ground rumbled and a large stone table rose from the floor. Jason stepped back. On the table was a knife and an obsidian bowl. Next to the bowl was a small bottle, made of firestone, one of the rarest materials in hell. It is the only material known to be able to contain hell fire. The chamber Jason had been tortured in was coated in firestone, and the pits where hellfire is harvested also contain firestone.

Jason had watched the initiation enough times to know what to do right. He was supposed to wave his hand and bring his human sacrifice, Dick, onto the table and sap his strength. Then, Jason would make quick work of filling the bowl with Dick's blood, while he was still alive. He would burn the body with hellfire, killing him, and drink the blood in the bowl. It was simple enough.

But Jason didn't.

He looked from the table up into the dark balconies, where his Father and his Sire were sitting.

"I don't have a sacrifice," Jason said, his voice loud and no one could mistake what he had said.

"You… don't have a sacrifice," came Joker's response. "And pray tell, young demon, why do you not have a sacrifice?"

"I can't kill someone and drink their blood while their body burns and they scream but do not struggle." Jason struggled to voice his feelings. "It's… not right."

Murmuring rose in the balconies. No one had ever _not_ participated in the initiation before. The ritual was a great honor and a chance for demons to prove themselves! For many it was a bragging point, often telling their fellow demons how much their victims struggled or how they manipulated the poor human.

"So you cannot participate in the ritual?"

"Yes."

Joker cleared his throat and the talking died down. "Very well. According to the ancient laws, a demon that cannot perform their duties is an disloyal demon. And disloyalty can only be punished with death."

Jason thought he had prepared for this. But even then, he started sweating a little. His hand shook ever so slightly, and ever muscle in his body was tense.

"Then so be it," Jason answered. At least his voice didn't waver.

The hellfire lamps in the room changed colors, bathing the room in deep red, a spotlight still shining on Jason.

"Very well." Jason could clearly see Joker's face now. He was smiling widely. Bruce's eyes were horrified, but his face remained stoic. "Shall it be death by the purest of hellfire? Or fed to hell hounds? Or thrown to the vengeful spirits of the dead? What shall it be, young demon? Choose your poison."

Jason opened his mouth, ready to accept his fate when the large doors burst open. "WAIT!"

Every head in the room turned collectively. Tim was standing at the doors, looking _very_ angry. His eyes were red, and his human form was smoking, unable to physically contain his anger. Tim's dress robes were scorched away mostly, leaving only the fireproof, skintight underclothes.

Tim was in front of Jason in a flash, and he punched him, hard. Jason went flying across the room, crashing into the opposite wall.

"You idiot, Jason!" Tim yelled, his voice shaking the room. "You fucking idiot! I fucking hate you! What is wrong with you?!"

In the background, Joker was laughing gleefully. "Or death by your own, dear brother."

Tim whirled around and faced the balcony. He took a shuddering breath and when he opened his eyes again, they were back to normal.

"Don't kill him," Tim said, his voice still as commanding as before, but now drained of the initial anger. "There is something you must see beforehand." Tim snapped his fingers and beside him, a person materialized.

Jason's head was throbbing really badly, but his entire body jolted when he saw who it was. "Dick?!"

Dick did not turn to look at him.

"This is Richard Grayson." Tim said. "He was supposed to be Jason's human sacrifice."

"Timothy," Joker started, his voice strained as he tried not to sound exasperated at his favorite son in front of the entire demonic court. "You can't help Jason in his initiation. He failed. Therefore, he will face the consequences. You cannot complete the ritual for him, nor can you bring a human into hell without consequence either."

Tim didn't waver. "But I didn't bring a human into hell. Father, Dick isn't a normal human. At first, I thought he was, too. But some things weren't adding up. When Jason had gone to earth without healing first, I went to go search for him. By the time I did find him, he should have been stable. But he wasn't. He was in just as bad of a condition, which could not have been normal, even without his healing powers.

"I had my suspicions, but it was too early to tell for sure. You see, I believed that Dick had demon blood in him." Joker's eyes narrowed and Jason's widened. "His anxiety had reflected onto Jason, who could not heal himself under such emotional stress. But it was earlier today that I came to a new conclusion. Dick Grayson is the answer."

"What answer?" Joker asked.

"To one of the six great prophesies. 'On the day the child of Lucifer returns home to save what was lost, he will save the entire kingdom of hell along with it.' Dick Grayson is the child of Lucifer."

"Wait, what?" Dick looked at Tim like he was crazy. "You didn't tell me that!"

Joker leaned forward in his seat. "That is a very serious assumption, Timothy. Can you prove this theory of yours?"

From his pocket, Tim drew out a scroll. It was wrapped in a worn, red ribbon and sealed with wax. A gasp rang out through the room. It was the scroll that contained the hidden Laws of Lucifer, their creator, the Father of all demon-kind. It was also a weapon. If anyone who did not have the blood of Lucifer were to try to open the scroll, they would be incinerated.

"Timothy! Where did you get that?" Joker growled, now standing up and planting his hands on the balcony.

Tim didn't answer. Instead, he grabbed Dick's hand and forced him to scratch at the wax seal.

"No!" Jason yelled, surging forward. If the scroll blew up, it would kill both Dick and Tim.

But it didn't. The millennium old wax fell harmlessly to the ground, the ribbon following. The old scroll unwound and it fell to the ground, stretching out several feet before stopping.

There was completely silence.

Then, one by one, the demons in the room dropped to one knee. They started chanting in unison. "We bow down to you, child of Lucifer, our Father and Sire."

Even Joker slowly knelt down.

Dick just looked absolutely terrified. "What the hell?" he squeaked. "I think there's been some mistake? Um, I came to save Jason. That's it."

But everyone ignored him. Tim gave him a small smile and knelt down beside Dick. Only Jason and Dick were left standing.

Dick slowly backed away from the center of the room, and once he was out of the spotlight, he ran towards Jason and hugged him tightly, his arms squeezing what were broken bones, but now, they just hurt like bruises.

"Hey, Dickie," Jason said, carding his hand through Dick's hair.

Dick sniffled into Jason's robe. "I agree with Tim," he muttered. "You're a fucking idiot."

* * *

CHAPTER 12

"I'm sorry about that," Jason said, breathing deeply. He could smell Dick's fear, and it smelled really good, but the urge to reassure him was greater. "So, child of Lucifer, huh?"

Dick pulled away and looked at him. "I have no idea what that means, but it sounds horrible to me. Why would anyone want to be a decedent of Satan?"

Jason shrugged. "Besides the fact that your word is law, and everyone must listen to you, and you have an unlimited reservoir of power? I don't know."

Dick's eyebrows shot up. "So I can command them not to kill you and they'll listen?"

Jason grimaced. "Rather unwillingly, but yes."

"Huh. I'll be right back." Dick walked back into the spotlight, his eyes shooting nervously around the room. "Um, excuse me?" He asked loudly. The chanting stopped immediately. "Okay, wow." He cleared his throat. "My first order, I guess, is that you let Jason go without any repercussions. Tim as well."

Dick looked back at Jason, who was standing in the darkness with a small smile on his face. "And I realize that there's this prophesy about me and everything, but I don't know anything about it, so maybe you can give me a few days or something to figure all this out."

Silence was his only answer.

"Okay. Thanks, I guess."

He backed away again, but this time, Jason rushed forward, grabbing his hand and pulling them from the court room. Once they were far from the place, did Jason slow down to a walk.

They walked in silence, their hands never letting go.

"So this whole 'child of Lucifer' thing," Dick asked. "How does it work? I mean, I'm pretty sure I have no actual powers of any kind. Unless you call the consumption of overwhelming amounts of sugar a power."

"According to what I've heard, your demon blood was slowly diluted over the centuries by human blood until it was nearly nonexistent. But because you come directly from the big bad himself, your demon side can be awakened," Jason explained.

"Awakened?"

"Don't worry. It's a painless process, though time consuming. It just brings out your demon side. And once you're awakened, fuck, you'll be as powerful as Tim, maybe even more," Jason said, his voice slightly awed. "You could be King."

Dick frowned. "I don't want to be King or the child of Lucifer or a demon. I just want to go back home, get a medical degree, and become a doctor and live my life." Dick sighed. "If I could, I would go back to those days where my life wasn't a mess yet."

Jason dropped his hand. "Before you met me."

Dick turned to face him. "No! No, Jason, no." He took back both of Jason's hands, staring at the differences. Jason's palm was rougher, more calloused, while Dick's were smooth and slim. "I don't regret meeting you. But I just wish we'd met under different situations," he said softly.

Jason ran his thumb over the back of Dick's hand and stepped closer to him so that they were chest to chest, Dick now having to look up a bit to meet Jason's eyes.

"We can figure this out, too. You don't have to stay. Your future shouldn't be defined by some archaic demon prophesy. It's not like there's someone here to enforce it," Jason responded.

"There isn't? Where's Lucifer then? Isn't he supposed to be ruling hell or something? I mean, you said your Father or whatever was King, but then where's Satan?" Dick asked.

Jason shrugged. "No one knows. I've heard some rumors that he died or something, but I don't think that's it. Most say that his life force is tied to hell itself, so unless hell literally freezes over or something, he's not dead. But he's just not here anymore. I don't think he's on earth either. My theory is that he skedaddled off into a different dimension several centuries back."

Dick made a face. "Yeah, that doesn't sound believable. So there's literally no one running hell."

"It's a democracy."

"Demon-cracy, you mean."

Jason just gave him a funny look.

"Never mind." Dick smiled. "Basically you're saying I can go back to doing whatever I want? And if I asked, no demons would bother me again?"

Jason nodded. "Yeah. That's about right."

"Then I think I know what I want to do."

Jason swallowed hard. "So this is good-bye?"

"Well, I was assuming that you'd be an exception to that rule. And maybe Tim. I like Tim. He's smart."

Jason shook his head. "I can't, Dick," he whispered. "No matter how much I want to, I can't. If you leave, they may not kill me, but I still have to take some form of punishment, most likely banishment. Away from hell, away from earth. I don't know where, but no one's come back from there."

"What if I commanded them not to banish you?"

"There will be other things. There's a million possibilities. Demons are tricky. Manipulation is one of our greatest assets. You don't know anything about punishments in our world, so whatever order you issue, they will find a loophole."

Dick sighed in frustration. "So I have to stay?"

"Of course not. You'll always have a choice."

"Do I, Jason?" Dick looked at him and cupped one of Jason's cheeks. "Because it seems to me that whatever I choose, whatever I do, it always leads back to you." His eyes flickered to Jason's lips. "So I might as well save myself some time and energy and stay with you to begin with." He leaned up and kissed Jason.

Jason wrapped his arms around Dick's waist, pulling him closer. Anyone could turn the corner and see them, but he didn't care. Because Dick was willing to stay. For him.

They parted, and one corner of Jason's lips turned up. "I think I'd like that very much."

From behind them, someone cleared their throat. They jumped apart, Dick blushing furiously.

"Sorry, am I interrupting?" Tim asked, not at all sounding sorry.

"No, um, we were just talking," Dick said at the same time that Jason said, "Yes, you were."

Tim cocked an eyebrow. "Well, the court wanted to know whether or not you were staying. Accommodations need to be made very soon, otherwise Dick, you'll have some rather painful experiences during your first night here. The atmospheres of hell aren't fit for a living human."

Dick nodded. "Yeah. I'm staying. For a while, at least."

As Tim walked away, he called over his shoulder, "Careful, Jay. Don't want to be making any accidental bonds!"

Jason blushed. "Fuck you, Tim!" He called back.

Once Tim disappeared, Dick turned to Jason. "What bonding?"

Jason laughed weakly. "It's like demonic marriage. Very sacred, and it can't be broken. Bonds used to be made as a punishment, bonding demons to inanimate objects or to gruesome creatures. Now, they're like the ultimate promise. When two demons bond, they bond for life. If one demon dies, the other dies too. It's a bond on a physical and emotional level. But on the plus side, they can draw on each other's powers in times of need, speak telepathically, and they both become more powerful."

"What about that night… in my apartment?" Dick asked, biting on his lip.

Jason shrugged. "I don't really know what that was. But don't worry, you're not stuck to me for life."

"I wouldn't really mind it," Dick commented.

"What?" Jason deadpanned. "That's… not funny, Dick."

"I wasn't being funny."

"You can't just throw something like that out there. I get that you're not educated in demonic customs and all that, but bonding is something most demons take very seriously."

"I know," Dick said, his voice and facial features void of any amusement. "I meant what I said. I won't mind if I were bonded to you for the rest of my life. I really like you, Jason. I don't know if it's just me, but I feel like that I was meant to meet you. That no matter what, that we would've ended up here. And while I'm not all too happy about _everything_ , I'm glad it's you."

Jason felt like he was choking up. "Dick," Jason said, his voice cracking. "Fuck, I don't know what to say. I think I've been denying it, but I like you a lot, too. Maybe more than a lot, actually, definitely more than a lot, but I've known you for, what, a month? Are you sure you know what you're getting into?"

"No," Dick answered honestly. "I don't, but I am more than willing to find out. But you have to be with my at all times."

Jason smiled, hugging Dick close and closing his eyes. "Every step of the way. Promise."

* * *

CHAPTER 13

 _ONE MONTH LATER_

Jason paced nervously outside of the room.

Dick had agreed to the awakening earlier that week, and though the process was fairly easy and pretty quick, it's the shock afterwards that is the worst.

From what Jason inferred from the screaming, at least.

He knew personally how overwhelming powers can be, and he wasn't even all that powerful on the scale of really powerful demons. And Dick would be the epitome of powerful. Jason knew that Tim still had a hard time with his own powers, and he had gotten awfully addicted to coffee as a result. The kid drank an average of four to five cups a day.

Jason had been quite worried, but once he found out that the drink didn't actually harm Tim, he was less worried. The caffeine dulled Tim's powers down to a much more controllable level.

During his stay in hell, Dick had explored nearly every nook and cranny of the place. He made Jason take him everywhere. Several times, Dick would try to touch something only to find out "Dick, no! That plant is cannibalistic!" or "Damnit, Dickie. Not all water is for swimming in!"

However, he managed to make it through a month in the fiery underworld without losing any fingers or toes.

And because Dick was still mostly human, he required food and water. So nearly every meal, Jason would cook for him, and join him at the usually unused dining hall to eat. Then, a Tim started joining them, popping in at least one meal per day. While both Jason and Tim didn't eat much, they enjoyed talking with Dick between huge bites of food.

Then, Bruce walked in on them during lunch one day, and he exchanged a few words with them before leaving. And that also became a normal thing. Dick and Bruce seemed to get along really well, and Bruce had taken an obvious liking to Dick.

The Joker avoided them mostly. If he were to pass them in the halls, he would only nod stiffly at Jason and Dick. Quite a few times now, Dick tried to make friendly conversation, but he had been shut down in a few words.

Dick wasn't discouraged though.

Dick had also made several friends with other demons. Koriand'r, one of the members of the demonic court, and a someone that had taken care of Jason when he was younger. She was a fire demon, but for a fire demon, she was pretty. Tiger, also a member of the court, who seemed the opposite of Dick's bright and sunny attitude, but Dick seemed to enjoy his company. Tiger was a pureblood demon, and he seemed to prefer his shadow form, but since Dick can't understand the language, Tiger stuck to his human form. And Barbara, a halfblood demon, who cleaned Dick and Jason's rooms on a daily basis. She had been quite surprised and in awe when Dick acknowledged her and thanked her. They become fast friends, their personalities shockingly similar.

Finally, the screaming in the room stopped and Jason also stopped pacing. He looked up at the door, holding his breath. Finally, it opened, and Dick was led out, leaning heavily on the shoulder of the doctor.

Jason rushed forward and took him from the doctor. Dick croaked a small thank you to the doctor as he slipped bonelessly into Jason's embrace.

"How're you feeling, Dickie?" Jason asked, brushing back Dick's hair.

Dick chuckled. "Good, but not good. It is very hard to hold this form." His voice sounded strained.

"You don't have to hold this form, you know," Jason said.

"But what if I can't turn back?" Dick asked worriedly. "I don't want to be stuck with clawed hands or no hands at all!"

Jason laughed. "Don't worry. You won't be stuck like that forever."

Dick lurched forward again, and Jason steadied him. Dick still looked uncertain.

"I'll help you," Jason said. He took one of Dick's hands and let go a little. He watched as his own hand became smoky, and then his arm also became made of shadows. He let his shadows curl around Dick's hands and wrist, gently urging them to join him.

The pair worked slowly, Jason's shadows merging with Dick's in a silent dance of sorts. Before long, a pair of red orbs were met with another pair.

 _Cold?_ Jason asked.

 _No, surprisingly. Wow, I can understand you. And I can talk to you. This is so weird. If only I could learn all languages this way. This is so cool!_ Dick's shadows swirled quickly with excitement. _I don't know if you can tell, but I'm smiling really hard right now. But you can't tell. So I'm telling you._

Jason would've laughed. _Yes, I can tell. I can feel it. And then I'm obliged to tell you that I'm laughing at your child-like curiosity. Come on, let's go back to my room._

He started towards the door, and Dick trailed after him. _Ooh, taking me home already?_

 _You've been in my home for the past month._ Jason pointed out dryly.

 _Yes, but you've never taken me into your room before,_ Dick said.

Jason racked his memory. _Huh, you're right. I haven't. Well, I guess this shows that our level of relationship has risen._

 _Mhm,_ Dick sounded content. _One step closer to the final goal, yes?_

Jason didn't answer. He still wasn't sure that Dick knew the extent of how serious bonding was. It wasn't like human marriage. It was a literal merging of two beings into one. If Jason and Dick bonded, they would be bonded for the rest of eternity. If Jason got hurt, Dick would feel it and would be weakened by it. No more secrets, no more hiding. In the act of bonding, everything is stripped away. Jason knew of several demon pairs that were unhappy about their bonding and the only escape was death. For both of them.

 _Jason, I know you think I don't understand. I do. And I want it. I want you._ Dick said quietly in response to Jason's silence. _You make me happy, and I do believe that I make you happy as well._

 _It's not just about happiness, Dick,_ Jason explained gently. _It's about promising yourself to someone else entirely. Placing your life in their hands. It's very dangerous and almost always ends badly. It's not something to be taken lightly. Even my Father and Bruce aren't bonded, and you've seen how they are around each other._

Dick would have sighed. _I have seen. And I just wanted you to know that I'm willing. It's all you now. I'll wait however long, seeing that I have much more time that before. I won't pressure you into anything. But if one day you do decide that you're ready, I'll be waiting._

If his shadow form could cry, Jason would be tearing up. _Thanks, Dick._

They reached Jason's door and Jason was about to open it when Tim teleported in front of them, completely out of breath and looking like a wreck.

His eyes were haggard and rimmed in dark circles. His hair looked oily and limp. His entire posture screamed that something was wrong. Tim looked sick, and if it was reflecting onto his human form, which in nearly all circumstances, showed no symptoms of a demon's condition, it had to be major.

"Jason," Tim's voice was wrecked, and he looked like he would cry. "Jason, I fucked up."

Jason quickly changed back into his human form and grabbed Tim's shoulders. "What is it? Tim, what happened?"

Tim swayed on his feet. "I accidentally bonded with a human." Then he fainted into Jason's arms.

FIN~


End file.
